Based on the small casting output of wire chill molds and chill molds for casting strands of small cross-section such horizontal strand casting plants operate according to the multiple continuous casting principle, that is at the same time, for example, four to ten wires or casting strands are produced.
The chill molds known to date for multiple continuous casting comprise either a water-cooled block of graphite having bores acting as mold cavities or graphite tubes disposed in a row, having a cooling jacket from copper tubing with their own water cooling. Considerable disadvantages are associated with each of these two known constructions of chill molds for multiple continuous casting. In the construction first mentioned for example the graphite block containing all bores must be replaced even when only one of the bores does not work properly. The disadvantage of the second construction comprises essentially that its spatial requirements are comparatively large because of the cooling devices coordinated to the individual chill molds. In addition, it is time consuming and not simple to mount and to dismount the graphite tubes when they are, in each case surrounded by a cooling jacket.